Posted 4 years ago on March 30, 2013, 12:56 a.m. EST by GirlFriday
(17435)
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Western has come to believe that just as offenders’ crimes carry a cost to society, so too does the shortage of social supports and rehabilitative services for offenders. A crime-control strategy of locking up more people, and keeping them locked up longer, isn’t working, he says. He is determined to help the American public understand how crime is shaped by poverty, addiction, and histories of family violence, in an effort to promote a more humane—and more effective—prison policy.

Those released from prison are, as a group, little studied, partly because maintaining contact with them is so difficult. The men tend to be “very loosely attached to families and jobs,” Western explains. Prison time strains relationships with partners and children, and the men often live separately after their release. They may move frequently, sleeping on the couches of friends and relatives or even becoming homeless as difficulty in finding employment begets financial trouble.

Tracking this group, though complicated, is essential to Western’s goal of understanding what challenges prisoners encounter in reintegrating into communities. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, he is tracking a sample of inmates released from the Massachusetts prison system who return to Boston-area addresses during the course of a year. The researchers collect friends’ and relatives’ information (to maintain contact when, for example, a subject’s phone is disconnected for nonpayment) and work with community street-workers and the Boston police, who may have information on the former prisoners’ whereabouts. Ultimately, Western hopes to learn what services might most effectively help the formerly incarcerated lead productive lives and what alternatives to prison might better improve public safety.

37 Comments

The released ( for the moment ) graduate of the penal system is truly expected back within 3 weeks to one year. There has never ( NEVER ) been an honest try at rehabilitation and successful integration into a healthy society.

That's one of the things that I am seeing now. There is this big push for prison reform right now. Hell, there was a rally in Wisconsin last week or week before. But, if they don't do this the right way or put some kind of a real effort into it then they go right back in.

Absolutely - and - AND - that means a functioning society - a thriving society for them to be integrated into. If the common individual can not find employment at a living wage - then what hope for those leaving prison???

Prison reform is only one of societies major ills. Smacking down greed over people/environment/life/world will do much in natural reform without doing any other thing. Those in the system will need help in getting out of the system at that point.

Our fight here isn't about greed, it's about standing up to injustice. If the people won't stand up to the injustice on wall street, they won't stand up to all of the other injustices, including prison reform.

Standing up must take place en mass, and on a regular basis, and lock arms together and don't be afraid to be locked up en mass. Keep protesting until all the jails are full, and all the FEMA camps are full.

From your link; (quote) The Pew Center on the States says that nearly $9 out of every $10 spent on corrections is used for running state prisons. But in Texas, reforms that reduced the prison population and allowed for closure of a 100-year-old facility resulted in a savings of $25 million and left the state-owned site available for development.(unquote)

Them's the figures that will lead to change, but we were discussing the criminization of dissidence. Thanks for the link, though.
↥twinkle ↧stinkle permalink
[-] 1 points by DKAtoday (24163) from

From your link; (quote) The Pew Center on the States says that nearly $9 out of every $10 spent on corrections is used for running state prisons. But in Texas, reforms that reduced the prison population and allowed for closure of a 100-year-old facility resulted in a savings of $25 million and left the state-owned site available for development.(unquote)

Them's the figures that will lead to change, but we were discussing the criminization of dissidence. Thanks for the link, though.

No - because if they had ever stopped and considered the best ( easiest cheapest most profitable ) - we would not have a polluted planet.

[-] 2 points by Builder (3810) 1 minute ago

Prisoners need feeding, housing, doctoring, watering, sanitation, and all the rest. Setting up a heap of FEMA camps is just the first step. Do they think their mercenary forces are gonna turn warden for the same cash?

This is the practicality issue that is missing in disaster capitalism. They rely on the people taking on a certain role, and playing a part. Peaceful protest and civil disobedience can win this game, and they probably have factored that in.
↥twinkle ↧stinkle permalink

Prisoners need feeding, housing, doctoring, watering, sanitation, and all the rest. Setting up a heap of FEMA camps is just the first step. Do they think their mercenary forces are gonna turn warden for the same cash?

This is the practicality issue that is missing in disaster capitalism. They rely on the people taking on a certain role, and playing a part. Peaceful protest and civil disobedience can win this game, and they probably have factored that in.

People have been so brainwashed they don't realize just how corrupt our country has become. That's why are numbers are so low. Overcoming that mind control is our greatest challenge. Maybe some ex moonies or scientologists can give us some pointers.

Wallstreet is the picture of greed run amok - with no prosecution when caught red handed in blatant criminal activities. The People need to see and understand all of the ills as well as how they relate to each other. Because no single action is gonna bring the change that is needed. There is a single basic cause to the majority of the ills = GREED. But that being said - the ills of greed are many.

Yes, it is. However, I, personally, dislike the use of the term greed as it is quite vague. Let me make myself clear to you now and then you can go back to floating around the forum bitching about the prison threads---like you do. While you comment on bitch fest threads and fantastical threads that go nowhere, which you most assuredly do support.

Here is the deal:
You are dealing with government contracts and corps that have made a mint on prisons, laws, as well as medical/mental health without delivering and, in fact, exploitation.

You will notice that this is Wall Street. Furthermore, considering that the trades that are currently put in places that have gotten rid of the higher education are pushing them into the lower economic scale or ........coal mining. You will find Wall Street there. You will find injustice there.

You will find funding cuts in the right to council through public defenders which would seek to imprison more people. You will find Wall Street there. You will find injustice there.

You will find the mentally ill are thrown into prisons and jails because heaven forbid that the mental health care system miss one cent of a possible profit. You will find Wall Street there. Injustice is there.

Greed is there.

But, you don't want to look at that. It's pretty scary isn't it? You wouldn't want to watch the changes implemented or consider what is at stake. You might not want to pay attention to Habeas Corpus, private industry lab debacles or treating people with dignity. It just doesn't work like that in Libertopia. You don't even want to question private industry being held accountable to success of parolees.

It is far better, in your book, to discuss a bunch of nonsense that fits in with Libertopia where details are irrelevant. People are nothing more than numbers. Maybe you can interject personal stories as if that paints the whole picture. It is quite the distraction that. Just the way you like it.

The bitching about prison threads has nothing to do with their content, but the direction of Occupy in general. We are not focused on any single issue, so our energy is scattered and the effect is negligible.

Instead we need to wake up the common people in America to the fact that tyranny has taken over and that they have the ability and the duty to stand up to injustice.

We must attack the corporate/government beast at it's heart, it's blood supply, money, not it's many tentacles.